| TITLE : Message of the Holy Father John Paul II |
TEXT : Fédération Internationale des Associations Médicales Catholiques
World Federation of Catholic Medical Associations
Message of the Holy Father John Paul II
Medicine and Human Dignity:
Doctors, Promoters of Health and Instruments of Salvation
XXIII National Congress of the Italian Catholic Doctors' Association
October 11-13, 2004 - Bari, Italy
Illustrious Prof. Domenico Di Virgilio
President of the Italian Catholic Doctors' Association
1. On the occasion of the XXIII National Congress of the Italian Catholic Doctors' Association, I cordially greet you and all those who are present.
The solicitude of the Church for the sick has always accompanied the preaching of the Gospel, and has turned into assitance and care for the benefit of countless people who suffer. Aware of that, you, Catholic Doctors, are called, by virtue of your belief, to be witnesses of Christ through your works of brotherly charity and your commitment to be promoters of peace and justice. In this way, you will effectively contribute to eliminate the causes of human suffering that humiliate and sadden man. As Doctors, moreover, that is as servants of life, you find in the exercise of your profession a privileged opportunity to contribute to build a world that is ever more in accordance with the dignity of the human being. Medicine genuinely understood speaks the universal language of sharing, of listening to all men without distinction, and of accepting all to relieve the suffering of each one.
2. There is no human being who has not known or cannot know illness. Illness can affect anyone and involve all aspects of his or her being; it can affect the body and also the mind and emotions. Therefore, medicine must make an effort to start a dialogue with every sick person, without giving in to discriminations, but rather addressing the needs of the person as a whole.
In order to realize this, medicine cannot do without an attentive reflection on the very nature of man, created by God in his image and likeness. The dignity of man finds its foundation not only in the mystery of Creation, but also in the Redemption wrought by Jesus Christ. If the origin of man is in itself the foundation of his dignity, so is his end: Man is called to be a "son in the Son" and a living temple of the Spirit, in the perspective of eternal life of beatifying communion with God.
Man is the center and culmination of everything that exists on earth. No other visible being possesses his same dignity. As a "conscious and free" subject he can never be reduced to a simple instrument. The inviolable dignity of the person must be affirmed with force and consistency today more than ever! One cannot speak of human beings who are no longer persons or who have yet to become persons. Personal dignity belongs radically to each human being and no disparity is acceptable or justifiable.
3. Dear experts in medicine, I reaffirm before you the ethical principles whose roots are in the Hippocratic oath itself. There are no lives that are not worthy of being lived, or sufferings, however distressful, that can justify the suppression of a life. There are no reasons, however lofty, that make plausible the "creation" of human beings destined to be used and destroyed.
May you always be inspired in your options by the conviction that life must be promoted and defended from its conception to its natural end. What will make you be recognized as Catholic doctors will be, precisely, the defense of the inviolable dignity of every human person.
In protecting and promoting health, you must never neglect the spiritual dimension of man. If, in seeking to cure and relieve suffering you keep very present the meaning of life and death and the function of pain in the human vicissitude, you will succeed in being genuine promoters of civilization.
4. In our society at times an arrogant mentality prevails, which presumes to discriminate between life and life, forgetting that the sole truly human response in face of the other's suffering is love that lavishes itself in support and sharing.
Unfortunately, as in many other activities of man, in medicine also there is the risk that scientific progress might be subjected to the desire to overwhelm and dominate, instead of being a powerful instrument to improve living conditions and well-being. Scientific research is then at risk of losing its original vocation oriented to man's good. No kind of reseach can ignore the inviolableness of every human being. To violate this barrier means to give way to a new form of barbarism.
5. Dear doctors, the Christian view of service to a suffering neighbor cannot but be useful to the correct exercise of a profession of fundamental social relevance. Biomedical research is also waiting to be vivified by Christian inspiration, so as to contribute always to the true well-being of humanity.
In hospitals and laboratories, be proud of the Christian identity that has characterized you in these 60 years of service to the sick and of promotion of life. Be able to recognize Christ himself in every sick person, and work together with those who are engaged in the health pastoral care. Let your "heart" be added to the irreplaceable contribution of the exercise of medicine, as only the hearts of people are capable of humanizing structures. Vivify your service with constant prayer to God, who "loves life" (Wis 11,26), and always remember that healing ultimately comes from the Most High (Sir 38, 1-2).
Dear Catholic doctors, I entrust you to the Most Holy Virgin, whom you invoke as Salus Inirfmorum and Mater Scientiae, so that she may support you with her bright example of unswayed faith and great mercy, and she may protect you in your daily practice.
With these sentiments, I bless you with all my heart.
>From the Vatican, November 9th, 2004
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